God's People: Rachel and Leah

Then Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my kinsman, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?” Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah’s eyes were lovely,and Rachel was graceful and beautiful. Jacob loved Rachel; so he said, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you than that I should give her to any other man; stay with me.” So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed to him but a few days because of the love he had for her.
Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife that I may go in to her, for my time is completed.” So Laban gathered together all the people of the place, and made a feast. But in the evening he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob; and he went in to her. (Laban gave his maid Zilpah to his daughter Leah to be her maid.) When morning came, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?” Laban said, “This is not done in our country—giving the younger before the firstborn. Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in return for serving me another seven years.” Jacob did so, and completed her week; then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel as a wife. (Laban gave his maid Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be her maid.) So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. He served Laban for another seven years.
When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. ~ Genesis 29:15-31
Looks like trickery runs in Jacob's family. His uncle Laban seems pretty adept at it as well!
The next few days will be devoted to some of the women surrounding and involved in Jacob's life and times. For most of them, theirs is a tragic story.

I have to admit that when I read many of these stories from the Old Testament about women, my modern, 21st century female self gets a little riled up about how they are treated: as property to be given to and to be used by men.

I have to believe that God did not, and does not, want that for women. God does not women subjugated.

First, we have Jacob's wives. Rachel, the loved but barren, and Leah the unloved.

 The solution here for Leah's being unloved doesn't really seem like a fair one - especially for Rachel. Not her fault Jacob loves her and not her sister. It seems to perpetuate how women are treated in the Bible.

But looking at this through my 21st century lens is probably not the best way to do this.

At the end of this story what is the thing to take away that gives us a clue as to God's character? What is the one thing that can truly translate into the world we live in and move us toward working with God to transform that world?

Is it Rachel's barrenness as a result of Jacob's loving her more?

Or is it that God saw that Leah was unloved and wanted her to know that she WAS loved.

God gave her a way to experience that love.

It is easy to get caught up in the details of Biblical accounts and miss the lens that most clearly helps us see who God is. 

The lens of love.

Probably this isn't the way we would expect God's love to play out in our lives today, but whomever wrote Genesis wanted it made clear: God sees our pain and empathizes with it.

God desires love for us.

That is something that even in the 21st century we need reminding of daily.

Prayer: God of love, let me not forget to look through your lens of love when I see the pain in others. Amen.





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